History UsefulNotes / ChineseWithChopperSupport

China has reasonably capable air forces, but only in its local region. Most of its technology is Soviet in origin, starting from the Mig-17 to the newest order of 48 Su-35s. The naval branch is medium sized and transitioning from a primarily coastal defence force to one with regional capability. More modern nuclear submarines and aircraft carriers (the first one is the ''Liaoning'', a retrofitted former Soviet aircraft carrier) are much-discussed potential additions. The PLA also has [=ASBMs=], missiles to destroy aircraft carriers.

The standard rifle is the QBZ-95-1, QBZ-95 (bullpups) and QBZ-03 (an improved Type 81 design) rifle. Older rifles such as the Type 81 or Type 56 (AK-47) are used for training purposes or in secondary forces. The PLA is also testing an OICW weapon system based on the QBZ-03 and features of the French FELIN system. Recently, the QBZ-95 has started to be phased out in favor of the QBZ-95-1, starting with the Hong Kong garrison. Improvements include a slant/forward ejection system and a more ergonomic safety selector switch.

* The People's Liberation Army featured in ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquerGenerals''. The PRC government issued a ban on said game, considering the portrayal to be insulting. Given that no one buys original software in China, this doesn't really make much of a difference either way.
** Also ironic when you consider the PLA were ultimately the ''good'' guys in that game.
** Apparently the CCP objected to the first 3 missions which involved a nuclear attack on the capital in one and you blowing up the HK convention center and the Three Gorges Dam in 2 and 3. That and the fact that the game has the Chinese get the stuffing kicked out of them by terrorists who are uncomfortably close to what it fears. You get the picture?
*** Not that the U.S. in the same game doesn't get its ass handed to it more than once. The mission where you have to use only air units to cover a huge convoy of badly damaged U.S. vehicles attempting to retreat springs to mind.
** Incidentally, one of the most prominent and overpowered Chinese units in the expansion was indeed an armed transport helicopter, the Helix. The Helix is the NATO ReportingName of the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamov_Ka-27 Kamov Ka-27]], of which China uses the Ka-28 variant. Hilariously, the real life Chinese Helix is strictly meant to be... an anti-submarine aircraft, [[JustPlaneWrong not the dedicated attack/support chopper the game makes it out to be.]]
** Someone forgot to mention the PLA had driven the terrorists out of... Central Europe.
** In the sequel ''Command and Conquer 2013'', [[WhatCouldHaveBeen they would have been]] the leader of the Asia-Pacific Alliance or the APA... then the game got cancelled.

Being the country with the largest population in the world, it's not surprising that China has more active-duty and reserve military personnel than any other nation, with nearly ''three million'' serving in the PLA. In addition, China also maintains around one and a half million para-military personnel in the form of the People's Armed Police, although the PAP is not part of the PLA, instead answering to the State Council. Only [[UsefulNotes/NorthKoreansWithNodongs North Korea]], [[UsefulNotes/VietnameseWithKalashnikovs Vietnam]], [[UsefulNotes/IndiansWithIglas India]], and [[UsefulNotes/SouthKoreansWithMarines South Korea]] maintain a higher number of men and women under arms - and, of those, only India has a potential manpower pool even close to that of China. Technically, military service with the People's Liberation Army is obligatory for all male and female Chinese citizens, but in practice the supply of volunteers is such that conscription has never been enforced. All eighteen-year-olds have to register themselves with the government authorities, in a manner somewhat similar to the Selective Service System of the United States. Chinese soldiers and armed police swear the following oath of loyalty:

Being the country with the largest population in the world, it's not surprising that China has more active-duty and reserve military personnel than any other nation, with nearly ''three million'' serving in the PLA. In addition, China also maintains around one and a half million para-military personnel in the form of the People's Armed Police, although the PAP is not part of the PLA, instead answering to the State Council. Only [[UsefulNotes/NorthKoreansWithNodongs North Korea]], [[UsefulNotes/IndiansWithIglas India]], [[UsefulNotes/VietnameseWithKalashnikovs Vietnam]] maintain a higher number of men and women under arms - and, of those, only India has a potential manpower pool even close to that of China. Technically, military service with the People's Liberation Army is obligatory for all male and female Chinese citizens, but in practice the supply of volunteers is such that conscription has never been enforced. All eighteen-year-olds have to register themselves with the government authorities, in a manner somewhat similar to the Selective Service System of the United States. Chinese soldiers and armed police swear the following oath of loyalty:

-->--'''Russian joke'''

When the People's Liberation Army's 'Pingjing' Campaign to crush the 'Beiping'(now 'Beijing')-Tianjin pocket of 500 000 Guomindang troops was complete, it established itself as the dominant military power in China. After breaking the defensive line on the Yangzi, they went on to accomplish total victory over the Guomindang in just a year - [[NoMoreEmperors bringing The Chinese Civil War to an end after 34 years of warfare and 8+ million dead]]. When taken together with the 10-20 million dead of the Second Sino-Japanese War this left Communist China as the second-most war-devastated state in the (history of the) entire world after the Soviet Union, her only ally. It also left her with the second-largest military after [[RedsWithRockets The Red Army itself]].

Being the country with the largest population in the world, it's not surprising that China has more men and women under arms than any other, with over ''four million'' military personnel, including reservists and the para-military People's Armed Police. Technically, military service with the People's Liberation Army is obligatory for all male and female Chinese citizens, but in practice the supply of volunteers is such that conscription has never been enforced. All eighteen-year-olds have to register themselves with the government authorities, in a manner somewhat similar to the Selective Service System of the United States.

For a while, from 1965 to 1988, the PLA did not have any military ranks [the early Soviet Army, the Albanian Army during the later Hoxha era, and the Khmer Rouge regime in Cambodia also did not have ranks, as a way to equalize the officers and the soldiers] and were forced to wear the iconic Mao Suit but with a red rectangle in their collars, specific to the PLA. This was done by Mao Zedong to take the PLA back to its guerrilla roots, and to curb what he thinks as elitism in the armed forces. Thus the highest military commanders to ordinary soldiers didn't have ranks. This had not proven well during the Sino-Vietnamese border war, where the PLA's chain of command were disrupted. The military ranks were revived in 1988, and so the new PLA uniforms and badges of rank were first widely seen in Western media, most infamously in the Tiananmen Square protests.

* The People's Republic possesses and deploys nuclear weapons. Their number and capabilities are state secrets, and publicly-available estimates are pretty much guesswork. See TheDragonsTeeth for more details. China promised not to use nuclear weapons in preemptive attacks and only will deploy one after being attacked by one, so many Chinese are pissed about it.

http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/PLA_8459.jpg
[[caption-width:330:Air, land, or sea; They're ''all'' in the Army.]]

->''"[[MemeticMutation China will grow larger!]]"''
-->--'''Chinese Bulldozer drivers''', ''CommandAndConquerGenerals''

----

* The current arc of ''Manga/BlackLagoon'', "The Wired Red Wild Card", features a [[{{Hackette}} female hacker]] named Feng Yifei who was formerly a People's Liberation Army operative that specialized in hacking into foreign agencies' files. At the start of the arc, she has been disavowed by her country after a botched hack job into a German corporation and comes to Roanapur to enlist the help of Janet Bhai to figure out what really went wrong. Things are starting to get worse for her as it seems like the PLA is now looking to permanently silence her. Notable for being a rare look into the cyber-espionage activities of the PLA, which makes a lot of headlines in RealLife but is almost totally unrepresented in fiction.

* The current arc of ''Manga/BlackLagoon'', "The Wired Red Wild Card", features a [[{{Hackette}} female hacker]] named Feng Yifei who was formerly a People's Liberation Army operative that specialized in hacking into foreign agencies' files. At the start of the arc, she has been disavowed by her country after a botched hack job into a German corporation and comes to Roanapur to enlist the help of Janet Bhai to figure out what really went wrong. Things are starting to get worse for her as it seems like the PLA is now looking to permanently silence her. Notable for being a rare look into the cyberwarfare division of the PLA, which is almost totally unrepresented in fiction.

* The current arc of ''Manga/BlackLagoon'', "The Wired Red Wild Card", features a [[TheHackette female hacker]] named Feng Yifei who was formerly a People's Liberation Army operative that specialized in hacking into foreign agencies' files. At the start of the arc, she has been disavowed by her country after a botched hack job into a German corporation and comes to Roanapur to enlist the help of Janet Bhai to figure out what really went wrong. Things are starting to get worse for her as it seems like the PLA is now looking to permanently silence her.

Despite the trope name, the Chinese do not employ attack helicopters and gunships in the same manner as the U.S. or Russia, and most Chinese "attack" helicopters are utility helicopters that have been refitted to fulfill support roles. This is expected to change following the introduction of China's first true dedicated attack helicopter, the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CAIC_WZ-10 WZ-10]], which is nicknamed 城管, or "Urban Management Chopper" for a joke that the chopper might be deployed by law enforcement offices to use them on street vendors. A second dedicated type WZ-19, upgraded from Z-9 or Eurocopter AS365, is also being deployed.

Currently, China has been making huge pushes to modernize their armed forces to be able to compete with the United States. In addition to trying to build their own blue water navy, China has developed its own homegrown stealth jet. The PLAAF now have a prototype for a fifth-generation (according to Chinese sources) stealth fighter. It is nicknamed by Chinese bloggers and military forumgoers "黑丝Black Silk" and "[[Manga/{{K-On}} Mio]]". The first nickname is because it's black and a fourth generation fighter, which sounds like silk in Chinese, and "Mio" is born from a random comment on how much this plane's shape looks like the hairstyle of... Mio Akiyama from ''Manga/KOn''. It's now know as the J-20.

When the People's Liberation Army's 'Pingjing' Campaign to crush the 'Beiping'(now 'Beijing')-Tianjin pocket of 500 000 Guomindang troops was complete, it established itself as the dominant military power in China. After breaking the defensive line on the Yangzi, they went on to accomplish total victory over the Guomindang in just a year - [[NoMoreEmperors bringing The Chinese Civil War to an end after 34 years of warfare and 8+ million dead]]. When taken together with the 10-20 million (Guomindang) dead of the Second Sino-Japanese War this left Communist China as the second-most war-devastated state in the (history of the) entire world after the Soviet Union, her only ally. It also left her with the second-largest military after [[RedsWithRockets The Red Army itself]].

China has reasonably capable air forces, but only in its local region. Most of its technology is Soviet in origin, with the country ordering the Su-30, though probably not getting them anymore, given the story with Su-27.[[note]]During TheNineties Chinese reverse-engineered Su-27 bought from Russia, and now produce an unlicensed copy named J-12, which is a cause of constant bickering between the two countries military export authorities.[[/note]] The naval branch is medium sized and transitioning from a primarily coastal defence force to one with regional capability. More modern nuclear submarines and aircraft carriers (the first one is the ''Liaoning'', a retrofitted former Soviet aircraft carrier) are much-discussed potential additions. The PLA also has missiles to destroy aircraft carriers.

Despite the trope name, the Chinese do not employ attack helicopters and gunships in the same manner as the U.S. or Russia, and most Chinese "attack" helicopters are utility helicopters that have been refitted to fulfill support roles. This is expected to change following the introduction of China's first true dedicated attack helicopter, the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CAIC_WZ-10 WZ-10]], which is nicknamed 城管, or "Urban Management Chopper" for a joke that the chopper might be deployed by law enforcement offices to use them on street vendors.

The standard rifle is the QBZ-95-1, QBZ-95 (bullpups) and QBZ-03 (an improved Type 81 design) rifle. Older rifles such as the Type 81 or Type 56 (AK-47) are used for training purposes or in secondary forces. The PLA is also testing an OICW weapon system based on the QBZ-03 and features of the French FELIN system. Recently, the QBZ-95 has started to be phased out in favor of the QBZ-95-1, starting with the Hong Kong garrison. Improvements include a proprietary forward ejection system and a more ergonomic safety selector switch.

In concert with this strategic reform was a reorganization of PLA infantry-heavy field armies into combined arms group armies, and the purchase of Western arms. These arms included tank fire control systems and 105mm tank guns, American and British counterbattery radars, helicopters like the UH-60 Blackhawk, modern avionics fitted on the J-7 ([=MiG-21=] clone) and J-8 fighters, 45-caliber 155mm howitzers, and antitank missiles. Understandably, Western military aid ceased after the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989.

* Chinese soldiers appear in ''Anime/{{Canaan}}'' when [[NebulousEvilOrganisation the Snakes]] take over the convention center in the middle of a conference and take multiple world leaders hostage. They actually speak Mandarin (though pretty badly) in the Japanese audio; the English dub didn't bother to do this and did a straight translation of their dialogue into English.

* Ha Jin's novel ''War Trash'' depicts the experiences of a Chinese soldier sent with troops to Korea during the 1950-53 conflict (even though China wasn't overtly a party in that war).

** Incidentally, one of the most prominent and overpowered Chinese units in the expansion was indeed an armed transport helicopter, the Helix. The Helix is the NATO ReportingName of the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamov_Ka-27 Kamov Ka-27]], of which China uses the Ka-28 variant. Hilariously, the real life Helix is strictly meant to be... an anti-submarine aircraft, not the dedicated attack/support chopper the game makes it out to be.

** Incidentally, one of the most prominent and overpowered Chinese units in the expansion was indeed an armed transport helicopter, the Helix.

* They were supposed to appear in the ''Film/RedDawn2012'' remake, but they were replaced with NorthKoreansWithNodongs, as North Korea isn't the country with the second-biggest film audience after the U.S.

* Rather implausibly described invading Russia in Tom Clancy's ''The Bear and the Dragon'', where they were massacred by Russians with American high-tech support.

* Chen Guoming and Karen Lo are ex-PLA Ground Force officers. Chen is the CEO of Daxinghai in ''{{Manga/Jormungand}}'', a pro-China [[PrivateMilitaryContractors security company]] focused on countering any [=HCLI=]-influence in Africa as well as advancing Chinese national interests in the region. Karen is his bodyguard.

* Ha Jin's novel ''War Trash'' depicts the experiences of a Chinese soldier sent with troops to Korea during the 1950-53 conflict (even though China wasn't overtly a party in that war).

Despite the trope name, the Chinese do not employ attack helicopters and gunships in the same manner as the U.S. or Russia, and most Chinese military helicopters are utility helicopters fulfilling support roles. This is expected to change following the introduction of the WZ-10, which is nicknamed 城管, or "Urban Management Chopper" for a joke that the chopper might be deployed by law enforcement offices to use them on street vendors.

* Chen Guoming and Karen Lo are ex-PLA Ground Force officers. Chen is the CEO of Daxinghai in {{Manga/Jormungand}}, a pro-China [[PrivateMilitaryContractors security company]] focused on countering any [=HCLI=]-influence in Africa as well as advancing Chinese national interests in the region. Karen is his bodyguard.

** In the Sequel Command and Conquer 2013, they are the leader of the Asia-Pacific Alliance or the APA.

* A slightly higher-tech PLA was one of the playable factions in ''[[VideoGame/{{Battlefield}} Battlefield 2]]'', including use of UAVs and advanced command-and-control systems. The Armored Fury expansion pack has them launching an invasion of the United States via Alaska.

* Chen Guoming and Karen Lo are ex-PLA Ground Force officers who are working with Daxinghai in {{Manga/Jormungand}}, a pro-China company meant to counter any [=HCLI=]-influence in Africa.

* When they appear it's usually to do with Taiwan. They invade the place in DaleBrown's ''Fatal Terrain'' (after tricking the US into destroying a civilian ferry) and then proceed to nuke Guam.
* The People's Liberation Army featured in Command & Conquer: Generals. The PRC government issued a ban on said game, considering the portrayal to be insulting. Given that no one buys original software in China, this doesn't really make much of a difference either way.

* Red Alert 2, a previous Command & Conquer game, featured the opposing armies of the Allies and the Soviets. The Chinese weren't happy about the fact that they weren't included, so macho fans made tons of game modifications, which added the PLA as a PurposefullyOverpowered faction that simply invalidated the use of any other.
** Also absent in ''RedAlert3'', though the ''RedAlert3Paradox'' mod is scheduled to add THREE Chinese factions (1 full faction called the Atomic Kingdom of China, 2 small ones, the PLA and the Nationalist Army) just as batshit insane as the other factions, drawing inspiration from AtomPunk, Franchise/StarTrek and Film/SuckerPunch.
* Rather implausibly described invading Russia in Tom Clancy's ''The Bear And The Dragon'', where they were massacred by Russians with American high-tech support.

** And they're back again in ''{{Battlefield 4}}''.

* In ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'' backstory, TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt was caused by an U.S.-China war which escalated into a nuclear war after the invasion of Alaska, which can be seen in VideoGame/{{Fallout 3}} ExpansionPack Operation Anchorage.
* China is one of the recurring factions in the ''[[{{Mercenaries}} Mercenaries]]'' series, and plenty of their hardware and troops are featured in the games.
* Chinese soldiers serve as {{Mook}}s during the [[CaptainObvious Chinese Embassy]] levels in the original SplinterCell. [[spoiler:Less of a straight example, since they are led by a [[RenegadeRussian rogue nationalist general]] in league with the Georgian government]].
* Communist China is a playable faction in ''HeartsOfIron''.

** And they're back again in ''Battlefield4''.

Currently, China has been making huge pushes to modernize their armed forces to be able to compete with the United States. In addition to trying to build their own blue water navy, China has developed its own homegrown stealth jet. The PLAAF now have a prototype for a fifth-generation (according to Chinese sources) stealth fighter. It is nicknamed by Chinese bloggers and military forumgoers "黑丝Black Silk" and "[[Manga/{{K-On}} Mio]]". The first nickname is because it's black and a fourth generation fighter, which sounds like silk in Chinese, and "Mio" is born from a random comment on how much this plane's shape looks like Mio's hairstyle. It's now know as the J-20.

The traditional PLA strategy in case of a major war was centered around the idea of "people's war"--a plan which called for luring the enemy deep, using guerrilla warfare to slow him down, and defeat him once he was overextended. After Mao's death; the need to prepare the armed forces to defend against a Soviet conventional attack; and the PLA's dismal performance in the Sino-Vietnamnese War, the 1980s PLA adopted the "people's war under modern conditions" strategy. This strategy consisted of a strong strategic defense phrase against a surprise attack, combined with guerrilla operations against mechanized forces' logistics lines; a strategic counterattack phase with armored forces against a stalled enemy; and finally a strategic offensive to push the enemy back to the international border.

In concert with this strategic reform was a reorganization of PLA infantry-heavy field armies into combined arms group armies, and the purchase of Western arms. These arms included tank fire control systems and 105mm tank guns, American and British counterbattery radars, helicopters like the UH-60 Blackhawk, modern avionics fitted on the J-7 ([=MiG-21=] clone) and J-8 fighters, 45-caliber 155mm howitzers, and antitank missiles. Understandably, Western military aid has ceased after the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989.

*** Not that the US in the same game doesn't get its ass handed to it more than once. The mission where you have to use only air units to cover a huge convoy of badly damaged US vehicles attempting to retreat springs to mind.

* They were supposed to appear in the ''Film/RedDawn2012'' remake, but they were replaced with NorthKoreansWithNodongs, as North Korea isn't the country with the second-biggest film audience after the US.

* A slightly higher-tech PLA was one of the playable factions in ''[[VideoGame/{{Battlefield}} Battlefield 2]]'', including use of UAV's and advanced command-and-control systems. The Armored Fury expansion pack has them launching an invasion of the United States via Alaska.

* The PLA is a playable faction in ''[[VideoGame/GraviteamTactics Graviteam Tactics: Zhalanashkol]]'', which covers the fighting along the Kazakh SSR-Xinjiang border in August 1969.

*** Not that the US in the same game doesn't get its ass handed to it more than once. The mission where you have to use only air units to cover a huge convoy of badly damage US vehicles attempting to retreat springs to mind.